A man walking his dog witnesses a police shootout. Rescued hikers are greeted by their wives and dogs. Lurking behind many of the news headlines of the day’s biggest stories is a dog. Yesterday, one of the biggest stories was the announcement by NBA player Jason Collins that he is gay. Collins is the first active player in a U.S. professional male team sport to come out publically. It is a courageous act, a historic moment that is being compared to Jackie Robinson breaking the color line in major league baseball. But was there a dog angle? As I read Collins excellent first person article in Sport Illustrated, I came upon this passage:

“As I write this, I haven’t come out to anyone in the NBA. I’m not privy to what other players say about me. Maybe Mike Miller, my old teammate in Memphis, will recall the time I dropped by his house in Florida and say, ‘I enjoyed being his teammate, and I sold him a dog.’ I hope players swap stories like that. Maybe they’ll talk about my character and what kind of person I am.”

I believe Collins used this example as representative of the many ordinary, real life exchanges he has had with teammates over the years—nothing to do with basketball, nothing to do with sexual orientation. Everyday life. And what represents normal everyday life more than a dog.

“I’m glad I can stop hiding and refocus on my 13th NBA season,” Jason Collins said. “I’ve been running through the Santa Monica Mountains in a 30-pound vest with Shadow, the German Shepherd I got from Mike Miller.”

In the photo gallery accompanying the article, most of the 16 images show Collins in uniform battling for rebounds, defending and performing the unglamorous duties of an NBA journeyman that have earned him accolades from teammates and coaches. There’s an image of him and his twin brother, Jarron, (a former NBA player as well) when they were college students at Stanford. The second to last photo shows Jason with his dog Shadow, both are clearly smiling.